The 9 Best Noise-Canceling Wireless Headphones

When you’re heading outdoors for a run and want to listen to some good music, you need a good pair of running headphones. But those earbuds aren’t great for every situation. While noise-canceling headphones can be dangerous outdoors, interfering with your situational awareness, they can be a godsend if you’re in an airplane, or trying to concentrate in a noisy office, or even on a treadmill at the gym. (And check out RW’s new on-demand treadmill workouts, available for streaming straight to your device.)

But there’s a huge price difference in the world of noise-canceling headphones. After weeks of testing 20 of the latest options on the market, we also found a huge difference in quality. Bluetooth connectivity sputtered. Crummy padding bothered ears. Batteries died mid-verse. After rigorous testing, these 9 triumphed based on sound quality, comfort, and ease of use.

Still looking for good running headphones? Here are our reviews:

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Bose QuietComfort 35

Mitch Mandel

Noise-canceling tech falls into two classes: steady droners and smart balancers. Bose has the best of both with headphones that assess the intensity of ambient noise and dole out the appropriate muffling waves. Plus: a steady 20-hour wireless battery life.

Monoprice Sonic Solace

Mitch Mandel

These cushy cans deliver up to 8 hours of noise-canceling power. TV, podcasts, heavy metal—whatever the content, the Monoprice outperforms many of its pricier competitors with lush, crisp sound from the 40-millimeter neodymium drivers.

B&O; Play Beoplay H9

Mitch Mandel

Made by Bang & Olufsen, this pair has lambskin-covered memory foam to provide ethereal comfort. "Like wearing a pillow," one tester said. Swipe a finger up the aluminum plate on the side to activate noise canceling; run it along the top to adjust volume.

Sony MDR-1000x

Sony

The soft synthetic leather of the ear pads provides a very comfortable listening experience, and the active noise-canceling technology, which eliminates ambient noise, was among the best we tested. Another cool feature: Cup your whole hand over the ear bud to decrease the volume so you can listen to important announcements, say, in the airport.

Puro Studio Grade

Puro

Besides the great sound quality, these headphones protect your hearing as well: The left ear bud has a LED light that monitors its sound levels. You want to make sure the light is green, which means the sound is 85 decibels or less, a safe listening level. This also makes Puro a great gift for your kids.

JBL Everest Elite 700

JBL

When using its NXTGen active noise canceling technology—which allows you to control the amount of outside noise you can hear—and Bluetooth, you get up to 15 hours of battery life. One tester raved about its charging speed as well. The built-in auto-off feature helps preserve battery when you’re not using the headphones.

V-Moda Crossfade Wireless

V-Moda

These headphones find a nice balance between comfy and durable: The 50-millimeter drivers are covered by interchangeable steel shields that provide nice protection; the ear pads are made of super spongy ergosoft memory cushions. Score.

Plantronics BackBeat Pro 2

Plantronics

For 200 bucks, these look and feel like luxury headphones. Enjoy 24 hours of crisp wireless sound in active noise-canceling mode or open listening mode, which allows you to have a conversation without taking them off.

Beats Studio Wireless

Beats

While listening to music, the Beats helped block out the “pronounced voices” around, said one tester. If you really have to focus and get work done, turn on the active noise canceling-only mode, which increases the noise-canceling to make it even quieter.

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